A crisis communications plan is a bit like the safety air bags in your car. You always want to have them, but you hope they’ll never be needed. It’s always bad news.

Preparedness is the key to handling “bad news” in hospital and healthcare communications. It’s simply good “PR insurance” to have contingency protocols at the ready when bad things happen. (That’s “when, not “if.”)

Crisis issues—ranging from relatively minor incidents to major disasters—will arise without the luxury of forewarning or time to decide what needs to be done. From a public relations perspective, it is important to plan for a crisis before the event ever occurs so that when it does happen, you’ll be able to effectively handle the situation.

A contingency plan will not have all the answers, but will help guide facility administrators, communications professionals, doctors and spokespeople to navigate an issue with an action plan for anticipated actions and responses.

Dust off your old Crisis Communications Plan, or start fresh, keeping these tips in mind:

Stay calm: Crisis events create a sense of urgency. It feels counterintuitive, but this is the time to calmly consider each action step. The crisis could be compounded by quick and poorly-considered decisions.

Identify a spokesperson: In all communications efforts, the organization should speak with a unified and consistent voice. During a crisis, information from multiple, and uncoordinated sources can make things worse with confusion and misinformation.

Ensure information balance and accuracy: Crisis situations are at risk for a battle of “he-said-she said.” While the other side or another source may have a sensational story that the media will want to run, it might not be a fair assessment of what truly happened.

Not talking is not an option. When organizations are silent in the wake of a crisis it usually fuels pubic and media speculation. Telling your story early on, and providing as much detail as possible, and will serve the organization better than waiting.

Factual information. Avoid speculation and unverified facts. Be prepared to say, “I don’t know,” or “I’ll check and get back with you.” Don’t gamble with unconfirmed information.

Learn from experience. Ask, What can be done to better handle situations in the future? Often, training (or retraining) is helpful preparation. And throughout the ranks, cross training and education can add depth to the organization or department capabilities.

While each crisis is unique and has its own challenges, advance preparation will help prevent an issue from being compounded and mitigate the downside risk.

Over the years Stewart has personally marketed and consulted for over 1,457 healthcare clients, ranging from private practices to multi-billion dollar corporations. Additionally, he has marketed a variety of America’s leading companies, including Citicorp, J. Walter Thompson, Grubb & Ellis, Bally Total Fitness, Wells Fargo and Chase Manhattan. Stewart co-founded our company, and today acts as Chief Executive Officer and Creative Director. He is also a frequent author and speaker on the topic of healthcare marketing. His personal accomplishments are supported by a loving wife and two beautiful daughters.

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